Newsletter

Posted November 11, 2012 12:17 am

JUNEAU EMPIRE SPORTS

Juneau-Douglas High School alum Brinson leads Fairbanks

Anchorage - Dominique Brinson scored 20 points and Zach Ngawaka posted a big double-double Friday to lead Alaska Fairbanks to an 80-76 overtime victory over Colorado State-Pueblo in the opening game of the AT&T Jamboree at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex.

The Nanooks (1-0) got 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting and 16 rebounds from Ngawaka, who had the go-ahead basket as he sparked his team to a 7-0 run to start the extra session.

The Thunderwolves (0-1), from the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, were led by 22 points and nine rebounds from forward J.J. Mina, who knocked down 4 of 8 three-pointers.

In a game that featured eight ties and 16 lead changes in regulation, CSU-Pueblo took a late 68-66 lead on a backdoor layup by Jed Knafelc with 32 seconds left. UAF point guard Pat Voeut would answer with the tying free throws just 11 seconds later, however, and the Thunderwolves could not convert a layup in the closing moments.

The Nanooks led throughout the overtime session, although CSU-Pueblo shaved a seven-point deficit down to 77-76 in the final minute before falling shy.

UAF will play its second and final AT&T Jamboree contest Saturday at 3 p.m. against Colorado Christian, while CSU-Pueblo will face host Alaska Anchorage in the event’s finale Saturday at 5 p.m.

Haines alum Fossman leads Anchorage

ANCHORAGE - Junior guard Kyle Fossman scored a game-high 20 points Friday to help the Alaska Anchorage men’s basketball team open the regular season with a 66-56 victory over Colorado Christian in the AT&T Jamboree at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex.

The Seawolves also got a nice debut from freshman point guard Jalen Little, who came off the bench to score 12 points with six rebounds, two assists and just one turnover in 27 minutes.

The Cougars, of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, were led by 12 points from forward Michael Stamer, while guard Kyle Weaver grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.

UAA started slow with 30.5 percent shooting in the opening half and CCU took a 26-22 lead into the locker room. The visitors from Golden, Colo., scored the opening basket of the second half and led 30-25 with 18 minutes to play when the Seawolves took control.

Sophomore swingman Teancum Stafford, a transfer from Snow (Utah) College, got free for a dunk on a feed from Christian Leckband to start the run. Stafford then stole the ball and fed Liam Gibcus for a layup as UAA outscored the Cougars 8-0 over a 5-minute stretch.

CCU – also playing its season-opener – would retake the lead briefly at 34-33 before UAA got back-to-back three-pointers from Little, a true freshman from Colorado Springs, Colo. Fossman continued the surge with another trey, and the Cougars would never get closer than eight points the rest of the way.

Fossman shot 4 of 8 from the floor and 10 of 12 from the free-throw line, while Stafford chipped in 10 points and senior forward Abebe Demissie had 11.

Gibcus and Little tied for team-high honors with six rebounds, and junior guard Mike MacKelvie had three steals in his Seawolf debut.

Colorado Christian will play its second and final Jamboree contest Saturday at 3 p.m. when it meets Alaska Fairbanks, while the Seawolves will face Colorado State-Pueblo in the finale at 5 p.m.

NOTES: Friday was the first-ever meeting between UAA and CCU in men’s basketball … Fossman is already more than a third of the way to equaling his free-throw production from last season; the team’s leading returning scorer (10.5 ppg) shot just 31 charities a year ago, making 27.